Draft-regulator and smoke-purifier.



J. A. & M. L. McFERRAN.

DRAFT REGULATOR AND SMOKE PURIFIER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23. m1.

1 ,292,83, Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET lnuns m. man-"mm IASllJlu-Idll, n. c

J. A. & M. L. McFERRAN.

DRAFT REGULATOR AND SMOKE PURIFIEH.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23,1917- la tented Jan. 28, 1919.

2 SHEE l'S- SHEET 2.

UN1-TED STATES PATENT onrion.

JOHN A. M'QFE'RRAN AND MILTON L. MCFERRAN, o'F LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

DBAFT REGULATOR AND SMOKE-PURIFIER.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented J an. 28, 1919.

Application filed July 23, 1917. Serial No. 182,376.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN A. MGFERRAN and MILTON L. MCFERRAN, citizens of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of Jefferson and the State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft-Regulators and Smoke-Purifiers; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make, install, and use the same.

This invention of ours relates to draftregulators and smoke-purifiers for coalburning steam boilers, and is an improvement on our invention set forth in Letters Patent No. 1,142,721 granted us June 8, 1915, which had for its principal objects the increasing of combustion of fuel in the firebox of a steam engine with the view of eliminating the smoke therefrom and of economizing in use of fuel.

At the time said Letters Patent were applied for, four ordinary flu'es through the boiler connected to a cross pipe in the smokebox, as shown, were thought to be ample to carry suflicient air to the firebox for perfect combustion, but in the light of subsequent experiments it has been found desirable to provide more than this number of fines.

Therefore the present invention contemplates the provision of an improved constructionwhereby an ample supply of air may be conducted directly to the point of greatest efficiency while at the same time the tubes are protected from the heat, and burning out of the same is avoided.

This present invention, like our other said invention, has for its objects (1) to increase the efficiency of the fire in the furnace of a steam boiler by the introduction of an unusualuantity of oxygen or air into the firebox. is) to consume the smoke and cinders in the fire-box and thus prevent them from passing through the flues and stack, and (3) to economize the fuel.

All of these objects are attained in the present invention and the draft-regulating and smoke-purif ing devices illustrated in the" accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification, are practicable and embody novel and useful details of construction, arrangement and combination of parts, all of which will be described at length with reference to said drawings, and will be definitely pointed out in the claims that follow the description.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a locomotive boiler.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the smoke-box, parts being shown in elevation.

Fig. 3 is a cross-section of a locomotive boiler made through the fire-box in a plane near the back flue-sheet, showing the arch in section.

Fig. 4c is a side elevation of some of the mechanism in the smoke-box.

WVe have shown our invention in connection with a locomotive boiler but it should be understood that the invention may be applied to any form of boiler, whether stationary or not.

Referring to the drawings, the letter M designates a locomotive boiler and G its smoke-box. A designates a hollow casting which we call the manifold used as a header for the plurality of inclosed boiler flues C. The back section A of this manifold A is made in the size and shape, see Figs. 2 and 4, to fit snugly on over the inclosed fiues C and to follow the sheet web between the lines around the inclosed flues C.

To install this invention on a boiler we remove as many old flues from the boiler as We have decided to inclose with our manifold A, possibly 15 or 16, in number, and then set in new flues 0 adapted to stand out two or three inches beyond the flue-sheet K, inside the smoke-box, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, to help support the manifold casting A in its operative position on the flue sheet K. Iron straps I, provided with bent ends I are held in position by the bolts N which hold exhaust nozzle N in position. These bolts are tightened. after the straps I have been swung to such position as to forcibly and resiliently engage the manifold A and hold said manifold in place against flue sheet K.

The arch D, Figs. 1 and 2, forms an airtight connection with the contacting fluesheet H and the side sheets of firebox X so that all gases of combustion have to travel upward over the high end of arch D to pass through the fines C and through the stack Z. O" represents all flues that are wholly or partially stopped by the arch D.

In Figs. 1 and 2 may be seen longitudinal sections of exhaust nozzle N through planes at right-angles to each other, showing different views of the nozzle partition V and of the exhaust ducts leading to the stack Z. On the upper end of nozzle N is mounted 'blower ring F provided with blower jet E and blower pipe F which is the ordinary locomotive blower pipe admitting steam. to the blower ring at the option of an operator in the cab. J represents the etticoat section of the smoke stack flaring out over the nozzle N to equalize the draft.

In Fig. 1, the descending draft sheet is indicated by the letter R and P is the horizontal draft sheet, while 0 is the cinder sieve, and L is a baffle plate at the lower end of said sieve. Some of these parts are rep resented to show the relative positions of parts of our invention.

B, B, B and B are four intake pipes leading through the front casting T of the smoke-box G downward and backward through smoke-box G and into manifold casting A. In Fig. 1 intake pipes B and 13" are omitted for the sake of clearness of outline in the drawings; but they are shown in Fig. 2 in their relative normal positions. Pipes B and 13* enter casting A at the front and pipes B and B enter said casting A on either side.

Now it is evident that when the engine is working exhaust steam from the cylinders passing out through nozzle N and stack Z, tends to create a vacuum in smoke-box (5r, thus starting a draft through fiues C from fire-box X; and when the engine is not working, the smoke-box blower may be turned on so that the steam from the boiler rushing through pipe F, blower ring F and jets E upward through stack Z, also causes a tendency toward a vacuum in smoke-box Gr, starting a draft through flues C from the fire-boX. This draft in either case takes with it from the fire-box gases, smoke and cinders. Therefore, ifcombustion is not complete in the fire-box, the partially burned gases, and cinders will pass off through the fines C, smoke-box G, petticoat J and stack Z to the atmosphere, taking along with them sparks and black smoke. For combustion cannot readily take place after the gases enter the fines; and smoke once formed does not readily burn. in the ordinary fire-box. But with. our smoke-purifying device the smoke is either consumed or prevented. from forming in the furnace.

One important feature of our invention, therefore, consists of improved means for taking fresh air in at the front of the engine through the intake pipes B, B, l3 and 13*, Fig. 2, where it is heated by interior radiation of said intake pipes in the hot smokeboX as it passes through to the manifold casting and thence through the inclosed fiues C, on its way to fill the partial vacuum created by the draft through the fire-box X, under brick arch D. This air is of such a quantity, quality and temperature, when it enters the fire-box X, that it unites readily with the gases liberated from the burning fuel; and its thorough mingling with these gases in its long travel under and over arch D to flue sheet H, insures ample combustion to prevent smoke and sparks from issuing from stack Z. Furthermore the temperature of fire-box X is maintained more nearly uniform, a fact which reduces the expansion and contraction of the fire-box sheets and fines. Also more heat is secured from the fuel, and the engine is more readily kept at its maximum efliciency, than is the case without our invention.

Having described our invention, what We claim is 1. In a draft-regulator and smoke-purifier for locomotives, the combination with a smoke-box and a fire box of a fiuesheet at the back of the smoke-box, a plurality of flue-tubes reaching from the smoke-box to the fire-box and having their front ends standing out beyond said flue-sheet into the smoke-box, a manifold casting used as a header for said plurality of flue-tubes and having a reduced section at its back left open and fitting closely on over the outstanding ends of said plurality of flue-tubes to hold said manifold from lateral movement on said flue-sheet, resilient means bearing against the front of said manifold to hold it securely against said flue-sheet, wilth a series of intake tubes leading from the open air through the smoke-box into said manifold casting.

2. In a draft regulator, in combination, a steam boiler having a fire box and a smoke box, a fiue sheet forming the front wall of the fire box and a fiue sheet forming the rear wall of the smoke box, a series of tubes lead ing through the flue sheets and connecting the fire box with the smoke box said tubes serving as flues for the products of combustion, an arch spanning the fire box and "having its front edge disposed in contact with the flue sheet at the front end of the fire box, a second series of tube extending through the flue sheets, a manifold casting inclosing the forward ends of said latter tubes within the smoke box and actin as a header for said tubes, a plurality of intake pipes leading from the atmosphere to said manifold casting and a brace having a resilient end which resiliently presses said cast- ;ing against the flue sheet at the rear of the smoke box.

3. In a draft-regulator and smoke-purifier, the combination of a fire-box having an air-tight brick arch to aid combustion, with a hot chamber or smoke-box having a stack and an exhaust nozzle provided with a steam blower to regulate the draft therein, a manifold casting, means for resiliently said casting against the flue-sheet of said pressing smoke-box, one or more air tubes leading from the open air through the smoke-box into said manifold, and a series of hot-air tubes running from said manifold back through the boiler to the fire-box to carry the heated air or oxygen to the fire-bed be- V flue sheet at the rear of the smoke box, a

stack leading from the top of the smoke box, an exhaust nozzle in the smoke box therebeneath, an arch spanning the fille box and having tight connection with the flue sheet at the front of the fire box, a plurality of flues passing through the flue sheets above the arch and serving as flues to conduct the products of combustion from the fire box to the smoke box, a second series of flues extending through the flue sheets below the arch, a manifold having an open back, intake pipes leading from the atmosphere to the manifold and pressure exerting means disposed between the exhaust nozzle and the manifold and serving to ress the open back of the manifold against t e flue sheet at the rear of the smoke box to thereby rinclose the 30 area occupied by the forward ends of the last named eries of tubes, the latter serving to conduct air from the manifold to the space beneath said arch.

5. In a draft regulator and smoke consumer for locomotives, the combination with a smoke box and a fire box, of a flue sheet at the rear of the smoke box, a plurality of flue-tubes extending from the smoke box to the fire box and having their front ends standing out beyond the flue sheet into the smoke box, a manifold constituting a header for said plurality of flue tubes having an open back and fitting closely on over the outstanding ends of said plurality of flue tubes to hold the manifold against lateral movement on the flue sheet,means bearing against the front of the manifold to hold it securely against said flue sheet, and means for conducting air leading from the atmosphere through the front of the smoke box and into said manifold.

In testimony whereof, we have hereunto set our signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN A. MGFERRA'N. M. L. MCFERRAN.

Witnesses: A. B. MOMILLAN, E. L. Invm.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of retentl, Washington, D. 0." 

